0:15:07 > 0:15:11Rory, this place is absolutely stunning.
0:15:11 > 0:15:13- What's so special about Killard? - Isn't it spectacular?
0:15:13 > 0:15:16It's over 100 acres of national nature reserve, Karen,
0:15:16 > 0:15:18and you know, it's never been farmed.
0:15:18 > 0:15:21It's very thin soils,
0:15:21 > 0:15:25pristine environment here and just chock-a-block with wild herbs,
0:15:25 > 0:15:29flowering grasses, sedges,
0:15:29 > 0:15:32butterflies, bees, you name it!
0:15:32 > 0:15:36Every time of year you come down, there's something different to see,
0:15:36 > 0:15:37something new.
0:15:37 > 0:15:43Definitely a place to come out and enjoy, and stretch your legs.
0:15:54 > 0:15:57Look, though, at all the colour and all the plants!
0:15:57 > 0:15:59- What's that blue one? - Isn't it spectacular?
0:15:59 > 0:16:02Come on, we'll step off the path and we'll have a look and see.
0:16:04 > 0:16:06Oh, even more up here!
0:16:06 > 0:16:09Yeah, and it's kind of late on in the year, but this...
0:16:09 > 0:16:10This is pretty spectacular.
0:16:10 > 0:16:12- This is field scabious.- Right.
0:16:12 > 0:16:15It's a really important nectar plant.
0:16:15 > 0:16:18- On the head of it it's got 50 individual little flowers.- Uh-huh.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20And you'll find the butterflies and bees feeding predominantly
0:16:20 > 0:16:23- on that at this time of year. - Ah, that's their favourite.
0:16:23 > 0:16:25It's a really good butterflies plant.
0:16:25 > 0:16:27This is another fascinating wee plant here.
0:16:27 > 0:16:29It's lovely. It's restharrow.
0:16:29 > 0:16:32It's called restharrow because of this massive tangle of roots,
0:16:32 > 0:16:35and when the farmer would take the harrow through it,
0:16:35 > 0:16:37he'd have to lift it up and clean it all out - have a rest.
0:16:37 > 0:16:40Great nectar plant too. Feel the texture of the leaves.
0:16:40 > 0:16:42- Oh, they're sticky! - Sticky and hairy.
0:16:42 > 0:16:45That's just to keep the... Protect them from the insects.
0:16:45 > 0:16:47And it has that long root that you talk about.
0:16:47 > 0:16:50Yeah. Kids would've used those years ago - I wouldn't recommend it
0:16:50 > 0:16:52but they chewed the roots as a liquorice substitute.
0:16:52 > 0:16:55- Did it taste of liquorice? - It tastes disgusting!- OK, THAT good!
0:16:55 > 0:16:56Well sold!
0:16:56 > 0:16:58- What about this peculiar thing? - That's a lovely wee one.
0:16:58 > 0:17:01- That's yellow rattle.- Uh-huh? - That's a fascinating plant.
0:17:01 > 0:17:05It's what they call a hemiparasite, so that actually
0:17:05 > 0:17:08takes the nutrients from the roots of the grasses that are growing here.
0:17:08 > 0:17:10And in doing that, it suppresses the growth of the grass,
0:17:10 > 0:17:14and you get more species moving in. A more open canopy.
0:17:14 > 0:17:16But if you shake it against your hand,
0:17:16 > 0:17:18- you'll see where it gets its name. - Oh! Are they seeds inside?
0:17:18 > 0:17:20They're seeds inside. They desiccate off.
0:17:20 > 0:17:23And in Norway they'd say when it's at that stage
0:17:23 > 0:17:26- it's time to cut the hay.- So this is a good weed?- This is a good weed.
0:17:26 > 0:17:29- Good conservation weed.- There we go!
0:17:34 > 0:17:36BIRDS CHIRRUP
0:17:41 > 0:17:45So, Karen, this is also a spectacular site for butterflies.
0:17:45 > 0:17:46If you come down here on a warm day,
0:17:46 > 0:17:49particularly early in the season, and it's nice and still,
0:17:49 > 0:17:52you'll see clouds and clouds of blue butterflies.
0:17:52 > 0:17:57Common Blues, you'll see Meadow Browns, Graylings, whole swathes,
0:17:57 > 0:17:59all over this site normally.
0:17:59 > 0:18:02It really is worth coming down here to take that view in.
0:18:02 > 0:18:05You can just see all the children and all the nets already!
0:18:05 > 0:18:07As long as you put them all back, that'd be great!
0:18:07 > 0:18:09What's the difference between a butterfly and a moth?
0:18:09 > 0:18:13Well, just basically, the moths are mostly night fliers.
0:18:13 > 0:18:15Butterflies are day fliers.
0:18:15 > 0:18:17You will get some day-flying moths here -
0:18:17 > 0:18:19I've seen the burnet six-spot moth
0:18:19 > 0:18:22and the magpie moth on the way down the path here.
0:18:22 > 0:18:24- Has it been a good season for them? - Brilliant season.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27There've been a couple of bad years, maybe three really bad, very wet -
0:18:27 > 0:18:30this year's brilliant. It's stayed dry and very hot.
0:18:30 > 0:18:33The plants are up in abundance, and they're all doing really well.
0:18:33 > 0:18:35Do you know, I've seen lots of caterpillars too.
0:18:35 > 0:18:38- The wee brown and yellow boys?- Yeah! - That's the cinnabar moth caterpillar.
0:18:38 > 0:18:41They feed on the ragweed here,
0:18:41 > 0:18:43and they develop into a beautiful wee moth as well now.
0:18:43 > 0:18:46They're quite spectacular.